Fort Worth weekly gazette. [volume] (Fort Worth, Tex.) 1882-1891, 1887-08-19
GAZETTE WORTH TEXAS FRIDAY AUGUST 10
everywhere, as only the sleeping coaches
Qenanad md c&a lod

| SNSAJ WuC1S1 as Ouly tuS siSSpluS CO6CDeS
escaped, and as the startled and half
dressed passengers came tumbling tout
they found such q scene of
death as is rarely witnessed
and such work to do that il seemed as if
human hands were Incapable It lacked
but five minutes of midnight. Down in
the ditch leY the second engine, with
Engineer McCiintoca and Fireman Apple
gate badly Injured. On top we're pilea
the three baggage cars, che On top OF Il E
other like child's card house after be
had swept i with his hand. Then came
the six day coaches. They were tele-
scoped as cars never were before, and
three of them were piled in Just
SPACE ENOUGH FOR ONE.
The second car hsd mounted eff its
truck, crashed through the car ahead OF
It, crushing tie wood work aside Ike
finder, and laJ tacre resting on the tops
CT the seats, while ever? passenger 10 the
front csr was liirg de.d and DING uudar-
meath.
Oat of that car tu. four people came
alive. On top Of it w2s the second csr,
with only three people alive. It's bottom
was smeared with the blood Of its vic
! tins. TIE thyee cars were not so bsdlg
| crushed, but they were twisted in every
conceivable way. Every timber ana
beam crushed e. human body. Instantly
! the air was
FILLED WITH THE CRIES
! OF The wounded and the shrieks of those
about to die. The groans Of the men and
the screams OF The women made an ap.
! palling sound, and above all could be heard
the sgonZiug cries OF little children, as
il some instances they Icy pinned &lcng
size their dead parents. There vas
smother terrible thing yet 70
De met. lie bridge was still
burning, srd The wrecked cars
were igirG a-CECd EeIcelv burning en-
! bers. Every where il the wIeck were
wounded KID uahurt mec, women and
children, WhUse lIy Is could be saved if
they could be gotten out. bat whose
death, and death in the most horrible
form, YVES certain ii the twisted wood Of
the broken cars caught fire.
To quench IN fire there was not 2 drop
of water end only fifty able bodied men
who had still presence of mind and nerve
enough
TO DO THEIR DUTY.
The only light Was lho light OF the
burning bridge, and with its aid the hftv
men went 80 work II remove it. For four
hours they fought like tanGs, and for four
hours tbs victory hung IN the balance.
Earth was the only Weapon Nth which
the tire could be fought, and SO ga -,
tempt was nude u smother il.
There was no piCk snd shovel
to loosen it up and no baskets or barrels
to carry it il, and SO depressed they dug
| their fingers down into the ground Whicn
the l0rg dT0uth had baked almost rs
bard So stone, and hsaped tae precious
henG!uls thus h4rd!y won upon the Ell
croachpg flames, and with the Garth
WORK, buljt handful by handful, kept back
the Zoe. While this WIS going on other
men have
CRErT UNDERNEATH
the wrecked cars Heneath the ire and
wooden bars which had pFisoued so
many precious lives, and with pieces OF
boards and sometime their hands, bea.
back the flames when they flashed up
alongside some unfortunate wretch, who,
pinned down by heavy beam,
seemed as if his dea'h by fre
WIS certain. While the tignt was thus
goiog OF, the ears Of the workers were
Tiled with the gr0aus of dying men, the
aEguished cries Of those whose death
could be eX.iDSuished, and the cries OF
those too badly hurt to care in what
manner the end We're brought about. 50
tley dug up the earth with their hands,
reckless Of the blood streaming out from
the broken finger nails and heapiDg 1t up
IN LITTLE MOUNDS,
while all the while came heart rending
cries: "For Gods sake, don't let me
burn to death" But finally the victory
was won. The fire was extinguished
after four hours Of endeavor,
ard as its last sDurt died sway
the light came up in
the east TO take its place and dawn came
upon the scene OF horror. While the
1gdt had been going On men had been
dying, and there were not so many
WounGed to take out CT the wreck as
there had ben four hours before. But
in the meantime the country had been
aroused. Help had come from Chats
worth, Forest and Piper City, and as the
dead were laid reverently
ALONG SIDE EACH OTHER
uut in q corn field, there were ready
lands 10 take them into Chatsworth,
Waile some Of the wounded were carried
to Piper City. One hundred and eighteen
was the swiul poll OF deed, while the
wounded numbered four times tina: mum
Der. A full poll Of the dead cannot,
however, be told yet for dGYs Chats
worth was turned into morgue to-day.
The town hall, engine house and depot
were ell full Of dead bodies, while every
house in tde uttle village hiss its
quota Of wounded. There were over l3G
corpses lying il cX.emporized dead
houses, and every man and woman WIS
turned into an amateur but z9alous nurse.
Over in lumber yard the noise CT ham
mer snd saws raUg cut On The cir,
and in it busy carpenters we're
Masking rough cotIf7s to carry to their
homes the bodies{of the excursionls,s who
twelve hours before had left their homes
full OF pleGsura5le expectation Of the en-
joyment they were going TO have
DURING THE VACATION
which had begun. When news of the
disaster had first flashed over the wires
prompt aid was ct once sent Dr..
Steele, Chief Surgeon of the Toledo,
Peoria and Western Railway, h.d
came on at once in s special train, and
with him were two other surgeons and
their assistants. From Peoria also came
Doctors Martin, Baker, Flegloere and
Johnson, and from every city whence the
unfortunate ex3ursionists had come,
their PHYSICIANS and friends hurried to
help them. From Peoria had also
come delegation OF the Ancient Order
of United WO-kmen, 8 number Of the an.